Very much so, in fact.
We
have a long history of racial profiling in this country, and some
clear examples of how it fosters alienation and undermines
perception of mutual self-interest. You know about the Zoot Suit riots?
This was a seminal series of events leading to the formation of street
gangs in California, begun when US servicemen were routinely entering
ethnic neighborhoods adjacent the naval base and raping girls, and an
LA police force that was unwilling to provide protection. PBS has a
great documentary on the subject.
Events of this type
introduce a profound schism between a dominant culture and ethnic
subculture that fosters the very alienation decried by everyone on this
topic, as it relates to the educational priorities of young people. In
order to address them, it is terribly important we don't exacerbate it.
Cultural stereotypes are powerful, and difficult to overcome. When you
add the element of personal threat, the probability that someone will
aggressively cross the line goes way up.
Race is so salient - it's a
highly visible attribute, and it's visibility likely underlies most of
the most intractable problems. A less visible attribute upon which we
might "profile" people involves political positions. Suppose I were to
tell you that people who openly espouse racist beliefs were 30 times as
likely to commit a hate crime. Shall we take Jared Taylor in for
questioning when he enters any new city? I mean, statistically
speaking, it'd be a good idea, wouldn't it? Perform a cavity search,
just to make sure he's not hiding a little c4 in some unlikely place?
If it's fair for the goose, it ought to be fair for the gander,
right? But Jared Taylor would never stand for it - he'd argue violation
of his fourth amendment rights.
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be
violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause,
supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place
to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
Being
black does not constitute probable cause any more than openly speaking
about the rationality of granting less rights to black men than we do
other people constitutes probable cause.
But
when someone is
treated as guilty because of status, it dramatically increases the
likelihood that they will eventually become guilty of the type of crime
you are accused them. Social relationships are very stabilizing
(particularly during formative years), and one of the things that keeps
us
honest is that we do not want to be socially sanctioned. When you're
already socially sanctioning people because of their appearance, do you
understand how this undermines their motivation to maintain their
behavior within socially desirable boundaries?
Of course, all
of this is very complicated, and difficult to address. It's probably
much more expedient to throw all the black men in prison - which is
pretty much what we're doing right now.
[Thanks Jared Taylor, for doing your part to exacerbate the problem, rather than becoming part of the solution.]